Occupying Wells Fargo

They call it “Western Wall Street” when they’re being polite, and quite the variety of unpleasant names when they are not, and they seem intent on singling it out for special treatment. Its real name is Wells Fargo, and the Occupy movement and its acolytes hurl such vitriol its way that, in 2011, the bank went as far as recording in its annual report that the group had the potential to damage its profits.

The charges against Wells Fargo range from the quotidian to the ridiculous: Along with almost all other large corporations in America, it is accused of paying too little in taxes; along with almost all the other big banks in America, it is denounced for offering the subprime loans that contributed to the financial meltdown of 2008. Wells Fargo is also held to be a particular offender when it comes to foreclosures — a trend that was made worse, protesters allege, by its acquisition of Wachovia in October 2008 — and it seems that it rather likes outsourcing too, with a higher than usual number of call centers in India and other foreign countries.